


Sick Fic (Kids)

by orphan_account



Series: Tozier-Kaspbrak [3]
Category: IT (Movies - Muschietti), IT - Stephen King
Genre: Adopted Children, Angst, Anxiety, Domestic Fluff, Eddie Kaspbrak & Richie Tozier Are Parents, Eddie Kaspbrak Lives, Established Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier, Established Relationship, Fluff and Angst, Graphic Depictions of Illness, Hospitals, IT Chapter Two Spoilers, Illnesses, M/M, Parent Eddie Kaspbrak, Parent Richie Tozier, Post-Canon, Post-IT Chapter Two (2019), Sick Character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-21
Updated: 2019-11-21
Packaged: 2021-02-13 15:17:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,470
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21496396
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: God, he’s tired.It was one of those nights where, as soon as he had changed into his sleep pants and a loose, worn tee, and slipped underneath the sheets, he fell unconscious. He didn’t even wait for Richie to gather him in his arms before going under.When he wakes up, it’s still dark. Richie is moulded to his back, arms wrapped firmly around him and hanging on like a koala. Deep, constant breath puffs against the back of his neck. It takes him a second to reacquaint himself with the room. Even though streetlamps on the street outside cast a soft orange glow into the room, tiredness still paws at him. And for a second, he isn’t quite sure why he’s even awake in the first place.Until—
Relationships: Eddie Kaspbrak & Richie Tozier, Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier
Series: Tozier-Kaspbrak [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1549198
Comments: 6
Kudos: 186





	Sick Fic (Kids)

**Author's Note:**

> (The title is awful I know; but it's almost 3am, I've been writing all day, and I'm very tired lol so bear with)

God, he’s tired.

It was one of those nights where, as soon as he had changed into his sleep pants and a loose, worn tee, and slipped underneath the sheets, he fell unconscious. He didn’t even wait for Richie to gather him in his arms before going under. 

When he wakes up, it’s still dark. Richie is moulded to his back, arms wrapped firmly around him and hanging on like a koala. Deep, constant breath puffs against the back of his neck. It takes him a second to reacquaint himself with the room. Even though streetlamps on the street outside cast a soft orange glow into the room, tiredness still paws at him. And for a second, he isn’t quite sure why he’s even awake in the first place.

Until—

A hacking cough comes from the hallway. It’s followed by a few padding footsteps against the carpet outside, and the tell-tale squeak of the bathroom door opening and closing – something that Richie said days ago that he would fix.

Eddie frowns. He waits for a second. And the cough starts again; but this time, it’s followed by sniffling and quiet whimpers. Eddie’s chest tightens. As gently as he can, he untangles himself out of Richie’s hold. The other man shuffles closer, pressing his face into Eddie’s pillow as soon as Eddie moves away. Slipping out of bed, he grabs a zip-up hoodie from the floor and tugs it on.

The hallway is quiet and empty, no one pottering around it. But a streak of light comes out of the crack in the bathroom door a few doors down. And further down from that, Eddie sees that the twin’s room door is open. He walks over to the bathroom. Peering inside, he sees Allie wiping her nose with some bunched up tissue paper. In the what seems to be harsh light of the bathroom, that way only because of the dark hallway outside, Allie looks so pale. Eddie’s chest tightens until his breath catches in his throat. The skin around her nose and eyes is a harsh red, probably rubbed raw. And then she coughs. Bless her, she tries to hide it in her fist and palm, but when she looks to the doorway of the bathroom, her eyes widen when she sees Eddie.

He lifts a hand. “It’s okay, princess,” he gentles, stepping into the bathroom.

“I didn’t want to wake you up,” she whispers, pausing to blow her nose. Eddie’s ears twitch at her breathing. Even without listening to her chest, it’s watery and raspy. His frown only deepens. She had seemed so okay at dinner not a couple of hours ago; laughing with her little sister and trying to push her brother off of his chair. And now—

He rounds her and opens their cabinet. Memories flash before him of his mother rushing in, armed with everything under the sun for fear of something turning into something deadly. He shakes his head. Everything like that is behind him now; but he can’t help his hands shaking as he fished out some cough medicine from the cabinet.

Allie sits at the rim of the bath, watching him measure out a small capful of the liquid. She makes a face. “Do I have to take that?” she whispers. At this point, Eddie thinks she might not be trying to keep her voice down for the rest of the house; but her voice might be going. And it only makes him worry more. He glances over to her. Her face twists. “It tastes gross.”

Eddie gives her a sympathetic look. “I know darling, but it’ll make you feel better. I promise.”

She knocks back the medicine like a champ, although gags a little at the sharp taste at the back of her throat. Eddie combs his fingers through her hair, bringing it back from her face. He waits with her for a moment, waiting for another coughing fit to come. It doesn’t, thankfully; but the wheezing still lingers.

And he knows it all too well.

“What does your chest feel like, baby?” he kneels down in front of her. “Does it feel tight? Like someone’s squeezing your lungs?”

Allie nods. Her eyes are bloodshot, but he can’t help but notice also watery. Eddie’s mouth turns down. “Were you scared?”

And she nods again. A sudden whimper wrangles up through her throat, and she starts to cry. “It felt like I couldn’t breathe,” she cries. Eddie brings her into his arms, rocking her gently. Sobs wrack through her tiny frame, only making her chest worse. He hushes her.

“It’s alright, Allie. You’re safe now. I’m here. You need to calm down, or else it’s going to get worse.”

Footsteps fall on the landing outside. Eddie glances over just in time for Richie to peer into the bathroom. His hair is askew and his clothes are rumpled, but at the sight of Allie in Eddie’s arms, all traces of sleep leave him instantly. He steps into the bathroom, eyes soft and full of concern.

Richie looks to Eddie. “Can I do anything, or?”

Eddie nods. “Could you get some tea ready?” A particularly squeaking wheeze makes him wince. “Should help get rid of some mucus that could be in her lungs.”

Richie takes a moment to go, but eventually nods and disappears down the hallway. Eddie turns back to Allie, lifting her up into his arms. “Don’t want you wearing yourself out, okay?” he explains, letting her wrap her arms around his neck and shoulders. With her against his chest, he can feel how every breath seems to rattle her. _This isn’t a cold or the flu_, he thinks with a wince. _This is something worse_.

With Lucas still in bed, Eddie decides to bring Allie to his room. One of them is already up, and probably will be up for the entire night. He can’t risk waking the whole house.

He deposits Allie on to his side of his bed, rearranging pillows so that she can lean back against them, propped up. Eddie perches on the side of the bed. “Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth,” he instructs, doing it a couple of times to demonstrate. It’s difficult for a couple of seconds, but Allie gets the hang of it. It helps, somewhat. The rattling stops. But her breaths aren’t very deep, and don’t stay in her lungs for long.

When Richie comes back, he hands her a warm cup of tea. She takes a couple of sips, but after a while of just both of her dads watching her, it doesn’t make any difference either. Eddie takes the cup off of her. “Allie,” he sighs. “I think we might have to see a doctor, honey.”

Both Allie and Richie look at him. Allie’s eyes widen. “But I’m fine,” she whispers, wincing at a cough that almost shakes her completely. “Please, daddy. I don’t want to.”

Eddie winces. “I know baby, but you’re not well.”

Richie stares at the side of Eddie’s face for a second before he nods. “I agree, Al. Your dad, he...he just understands this. Okay?”

She doesn’t look happy at all, but she glances down at her hands, joined on top of her lap, and nods. Biting her lip, she looks back up. “Will you stay with me?”

Someone will have to stay with the other kids. Richie places a small kiss to Eddie’s temple. “I’ll stay here. You go,” he says gently. “Just keep me up to date with what’s happening.”

Eddie reaches out and takes one of Allie’s small hands in his. “I’ll be with you the entire time, baby. I promise.”

Eddie stands, wincing slightly at the sound of joints cracking. He picks up his phone from his bedside table, tapping in the number of the ER. Despite his history, and all of the neurosis he’s been left with because of his past, he hasn’t been to the local hospital’s ER before. Most of the time, when the kids get sick, it’s with runny noses and colds. But listening to Allie cough, and seeing her start to wince in pain at how tight her chest must be, he can’t type out the number fast enough.

His other hand is caught. Looking up, Richie stares back at him. “I’m serious. I want updates.”

“I’ll practically livestream it if you want,” Eddie reasons, kissing Richie on the lips. He presses his forehead against the other man’s. “Everything will be okay.” And whether he’s assuring Richie, Allie, himself, or all three of them, he isn’t sure.

* * *

_Name drop me if you want to get special treatment. _

Eddie rolls his eyes. No one in the ER at 4am is going to give a shit about Richie Tozier, Comedian. He taps out a quick reply. **_I would literally rather die than try that. _**

Allie lies in a hospital bed, the head of it propped up to help her lungs. They’ve already been through triage. The consultant on duty had taken one look at Allie and decided to admit her for some treatment.

_Pneumonia_, he had told them. Allie is too young to know what it is, but Eddie’s heart sank. He had an inkling that it could have been a pretty nasty chest infection; but how pneumonia of all things managed to get her this bad this quickly, he has no idea.

_Kids overcompensate_, the doctor explained, monitoring a nurse start an IV line for antibiotics. _They can catch all sorts and be perfectly fine, and then suddenly they go downhill fast. _The doctor had given him a half-smile, and a hand on the shoulder. _You did great for bringing her in when you did_.

And he could have slept through it. Eddie gnaws at his thumbnail. Only for his goddamn Dad-Senses waking him up, he wouldn’t have even noticed Allie getting sick. She didn’t even want to wake them. And she couldn’t breathe—

Eddie sits by her bedside, watching her scroll idly through games on his phone. _Because over his dead body were his children going to have phones before the age of 12_. The three of them can win over Richie with big eyes and wobbling lips, but he’s harder to get.

He watches her play, eyelids starting to droop slightly. The antibiotics must be strong. In a couple of minutes, his phone finally slips out of her hand as she finally slips off to sleep. A heart monitor beside her bed beeps to a steady rhythm. And Eddie finds himself staring at it; watching a line go up and down, and numbers never change.

As soon as he gets his phone back, it starts to buzz.

_So what’s the verdict?_

Eddie sits back in the stiff leather chair. His back is starting to protest, but he can’t bring himself to leave Allie’s side – even if it’s to stand up and move around the room. _Bilateral pneumonia_, he sends back to Richie, keeping his phone unlocked for a reply.

Within seconds, he sees the typing icon appear. _English, Eds. We aren’t practically doctors like you._

He rolls his eyes. _Pneumonia in both of her lungs. It’s pretty bad. _

And it takes a while for a message to come through. But Eddie blinks at Richie’s caller ID pop up. He swipes the screen. “Hey,” he gentles, making sure he doesn’t wake Allie. Then again, the antibiotics she’s on are enough to tranquilise a horse. He reaches out and brings the thin, cotton hospital blanket up towards her chin.

Richie’s voice is suddenly in his ear. “How is she? Is she any better? Do you need me to come there or?—”

Eddie sighs. “Calm down, you’re starting to sound like me.”

They’re in a private room. A long window looks out on to the hallway, and when he hasn’t been watching either his daughter or the monitors attached to her, Eddie’s been watching nurses and patients walk by. Eddie chews the inside of his lip. “She needs to finish this IV bag of antibiotics and then she can come home.” He pinches the bridge of his nose. “She’ll have to be on meds for a bit, but the doctor said it should clear up just fine.”

Richie makes a noise. For a moment, the only sound Eddie can hear is the beeping of the monitor. The wheezing in Allie’s chest has eased off ever since one of the nurses started the antibiotics. After a minute, Richie breaks the silence. “How’re you?”

A frown creases Eddie’s brow. “What?”

“Are you okay?” Richie prods. “You just seem very...calm.”

“Just peachy,” Eddie mumbles.

“Don’t bullshit me,” Richie replies. “How are you?”

And all at once, everything that has happened in the past couple of hours hits him like a freight train. His breath lodges in his throat, and what comes out of him isn’t so much as words, but a noise. Eventually, after a small cough, it all comes out. “She could have died,” Eddie chokes. “This kinda shit can kill, Rich. It’s why people make such a big fucking deal about the flu shot and shit like that. What if she got something from someone at the school? And I know, I know we can’t protect them from everything, but Jesus H. Christ, my nerves are shot from worrying.”

And Richie doesn’t say a word. He’s done this before; letting Eddie ramble, airing all of his anxieties. Because he’s learned the hard way that there isn’t actually a way to stop Eddie’s mouth from moving once it starts going. When the filter between his brain and mouth breaks down, and when anxiety and panic creep in, what falls out needs to come out otherwise it’ll eat him alive.

So he doesn’t really know how long he talks for, but by the end of it, he catches his breath. His shoulders feel a bit lighter.

In the background, Eddie can hear two thin voices. _Jesus Christ_. “Are the kids awake?”

Richie sighs. “Listen, I think Lucas and Allie have some sort of twin-telepathy shit going on. As soon as your car down turned the street corner, Lucas was sitting up in bed looking for Al.”

“And Sophie?”

“Sophie is Sophie. I don’t think she actually sleeps at all.” From the noise in the background, Eddie can tell that Richie has just herded the kids into their room, settled them in their bed, and is letting them watch something on the iPad. He can hear the faint argument going on about what to watch. Richie turns away for a second. _Let Lucas watch something now, Princess. You can have your turn again in a bit._

Movement catches the corner of Eddie’s eye. Allie struggles to consciousness, blinking a couple of times before looking around the room. She tries to hide a wide yawn behind her hand, but stops mid-way when she notices the cannula in the back of her hand.

Eddie sits forward, leaning an elbow on the side of the bed. “Your dad is on the phone. Do you want to talk to him?”

Allie rubs at her eyes, and nods. Eddie sits back as Allie tiredly holds a conversation with Richie. She tells him about everything they’ve seen in the hospital so far; how the triage had been scary at first, but then a very nice nurse called Joan came and took them to the children’s ward – which was a bit dumb, because she’s _not_ a child. She’s almost ten years old, thank you.

A tired smile spreads across Eddie’s face. She talks to Richie for a while, fingers picking at the fabric of the blanket.

By the time the consultant gives Allie the all-clear to go home, the sun is starting to come up. Although she’s almost ten, Allie is light enough for Eddie to carry through the hospital and out to the car. Clenched in one hand is a paper bag of antibiotics and a small inhaler for Allie to use for the next coming days. Getting Allie into the car is simple enough. As soon as Eddie pulls the seatbelt over her body and clicks it in, she’s fallen back asleep.

He leaves the radio off as he drives home, preferring the silence. He gathers his thoughts; or what’s left of them. Having a minor vent to Richie helped, but the fear still chills his blood. His daughter could have died. And he was down the hall, asleep, and could have missed it entirely.

His grip on the steering wheel tightens. When they get home, Eddie tries his best to get Allie out of the car without waking her. Richie is better at it than he is; how he can get Sophie out of her car seat without waking her up is something short of a mystery. But he always manages. Eddie lets Allie settle against him before he attempts to close the car door and make his way to the house.

Lucas meets them at the front door, in his pyjamas and slightly out of breath. “Is she okay? What happened? Can I help?”

Eddie gently shushes him. “Everything’s fine, Lou. But she’s tired and needs to sleep.” Lucas steps aside, closing the door behind them as Eddie makes a line for the stairs. Lucas shadows him, peering up at his sister with a slight frown.

Richie is at the top of the staircase, an unconscious Sophie in his arms. He sways gently, almost stopping when he sees Eddie with Allie. “Hey,” he says softly. “How is she?”

Eddie inclines his head. _Follow me_. The twin’s room is as they left it; with Allie’s sheets pulled somewhat off of her bed, plush toys strewn about on the floor. Lucas’ side of the room doesn’t look that much better. But if they haven’t slept through the night, Eddie can understand the mess.

He gently sets her down in bed, rearranging pillows and sheets to make her comfortable and warm. Richie’s face is contorted into a frown. Eddie sets his jaw. “She has medicine to take in the morning.” Lucas stands between him and Richie, staring at Allie shuffle slightly in bed, before finally settling with a soft sigh. Eddie reaches out, gently taking one of Lucas’ hands. “I’ll need help taking care of her. Could you help me, buddy?”

Lucas nods firmly. “I can watch her tonight, if you want?”

Richie huffs a small laugh. “You need your sleep too, Lou,” he ruffles Lucas’ short hair. But, Lucas’ bed is just across the room from Allie’s. And despite them wishing that he would go to sleep just for a while, Eddie knows that he won’t. He’ll be just as consumed with worry as he is.

Despite all of it, Richie manages to get Lucas into bed. He turns on to one side, facing Allie; and just as they start to leave the room, Eddie notices Lucas’ eyelids starting to droop closed.

Sophie doesn’t move against Richie’s chest. She has some of his tee clenched in one tiny fist, while she has the other by her mouth. Of the five people in the house, Eddie’s at least thankful that someone will have a good enough amount of sleep for the night. And it’s shocking that it’s _Sophie_ of all people.

Sophie’s room is right beside theirs. Eddie watches as Richie disappears into that first, setting the youngest of the kids down into her bed, before following Eddie. As soon as Eddie sits down on their bed, he collapses back on to the collection of pillows they have stacked up against the headboard. A long, drawn-out sigh leaves him.

He feels the other side of the bed dip. Within seconds, Richie is at his side, throwing an arm loosely across his middle. “Do you want to talk about it?” he mumbles into Eddie’s shoulder.

Light is starting to creep into their room. Within the hour, cars are going to start driving by as parents bring their kids to school. And people will be lining the street, walking to the nearby subway station. It’s morning; and he’s exhausted.

He turns his head, looking over to Richie. Their noses brush with how close Richie is to him. “Later,” he sighs,

The faint scent of hand sanitizer lingers. He vaguely wonders if Richie can smell it on him. If he does, he doesn’t say anything. Instead, Richie’s arm tightens around his middle, and he finds himself being dragged further into Richie’s space. Nestling his face into the juncture of Eddie’s neck and shoulder, Richie presses a chaste kiss to the skin there. “She’ll be fine,” he mumbles. The words are almost lost entirely into Eddie’s skin. “She’s got the best doc, this side of Manhattan.”

Eddie swats his arm, but a small smile spreads across his face nonetheless. 

**Author's Note:**

> Tumblr; yourqueenforayear.tumblr.com | agoodgoddamnshot.tumblr.com
> 
> Comments & Kudos very much welcomed x


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